CORAL SPRINGS - One of the awful things about growing old - besides hair coming out of your ears - is you never know when you'll be ambushed into feeling old. A song from high school. A picture someone found. On Sunday, it was tweets from a couple of dozen people wondering why Panthers fans throw rats, including one from "ItsMeMike," who asked: "People keep these dead rats on their person the whole time?" Now, understand: I get it. Time moves on. And I love the rats.

Sometime around nine Wednesday night, Scott Mellanby raised his arms at the left corner of the Carolina Hurricanes' net and pumped them twice. Finally, a goal . . . after 16 games. "Probably the longest scoring slump of my career," said the Panthers' veteran right wing. The monkey was off his back. But what of the burden of wearing the C? For the first time in his career, Mellanby is toting not only his stick on the ice, but the captaincy of the Panthers. After serving as an alternate behind Brian Skrudland for four years, Mellanby signed a three-year deal in September and, on the same day, was given a jersey bearing the signature of the team captain.

Panthers rookie defenseman Erik Gudbranson was more in tune with Mickey Mouse when Rat Mania swept South Florida. The Ottawa native was 4 while the upstart Panthers were making that magical run to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1996 with thousands of plastic rats raining onto the ice after every goal. "Was one killed on the ice or something?" Gudbranson says of the origin of the rat-tossing craze that is making a comeback along with the Panthers' rise to first place and bid to end a 10-year playoff drought.

He leads in every offensive category in team history, and one day his No. 27 will be raised to the rafters of National Car Rental Center. There's no doubt that Scott Mellanby has offered his heart and soul to the Panthers since the team's inception in 1993. But Mellanby, who has played in 551 of the team's 596 games and is in the final year of his contract, said that he expects that his Panthers' tenure will end soon. "We talked a little bit about an extension over the summer, but then it just kind of ended," Mellanby said.

There's a big difference between the Scott Mellanby who plays in St. Louis and the Scott Mellanby who left the Panthers in February 2001: He loves playing hockey again. "Mentally, I think I was done there," said Mellanby, the former Panthers captain who has resurrected his career at 36 with the Blues. "I hear fans down there say they shouldn't have traded Mellanby and stuff, but I don't know. "I wasn't playing well, and I lost my motivation coming to the rink because of a lot of things that transpired my last couple of years.

Only on-ice officials are on strike, but the off-ice officials looked shakier Tuesday. A Panthers goal was rightfully nullified by the video replay judge after the goal judge put on the red light. Scott Mellanby's shot actually hit the post and ricocheted in front of the net. The Panthers scored 15 seconds later to tie it at 1.

Besides General Manager Bob Clarke, who spent his playing career with Philadelphia, there were plenty of former Flyers in Tuesday's game. Six Panthers have Philadelphia links, including injured right wing Andrei Lomakin (1991-93), defensemen Brian Benning (1992-93), Smyth (1986-88) and Gord Murphy (1988-92), right wing Scott Mellanby (1986-91) and center Len Barrie (1992-93).

Canadiens goaltender Patrick Roy leads the Blockbuster Eastern Conference All-Star fan balloting at his position with 57,544 votes. But Panthers goalie John Vanbiesbrouck is second with 32,398 votes. Tom Barrasso is third with 23,652. Other Panthers on the ballot are winger Scott Mellanby, who has received 15,455 votes, and defenseman Joe Cirella, who has 15,851.

Panthers who did not dress Thursday night were center Randy Gilhen and defensemen Greg Smyth and Paul Laus... Defenseman Greg Smyth underwent arthroscopic surgery Thursday afternoon on his right elbow to remove bone chips. Smyth is only expected to miss 7-10 days... The Panthers starting lineup Thursday: Fitzpatrick in net, Joe Cirella and Brian Benning on defense, Scott Mellanby on right wing, Dave Lowry on the left and Rob Niedermayer at center.

Scott Mellanby will be part of Saturday night's Den of Honor tribute to past players and the franchise's history. But he left the rat at home. Mellanby scored 32 goals for the Panthers' 1995-96 Eastern Conference championship team in just their third season of existence. Several teammates from that squad, plus coach Doug MacLean, will bask in some much-needed fun at BankAtlantic Center. Perhaps the former Panthers will have to dodge a few plastic rats during the introductions.

Panthers defenseman Keith Ballard wasn't himself on the ice at the start of this season. He wasn't doling out crushing hits. He wasn't agitating. "When he's in the game, he's physical and he's p------ off the best players on the other team," Panthers coach Pete DeBoer said. "That's the best way to put it. He has to play that way." Ballard appears to be back. He's crunching opposing players again - some with his trademark hip checks - battling for pucks in the corners and generally being a pest.

Hi y'all. Talked to David Booth today at Incredible Ice. He's looking a whole lot better -- the only remnants of his facial injuries as a result of his concussion is a little red in his eye from a broken blood vessel. He said he feels a whole lot better than the last time we talked to him, too. The news: Booth said he is expected to be cleared in the next couple of days to start doing some light exercise, probably 10 minutes on the bike, he said. For now, all he's done is go for a walk or relax in the pool.

Andi Gresham has taken her love of the Florida Panthers from the ice to her first-grade classroom at Plantation Elementary, and it's paid off with winning the team's Cats in the Classroom contest. The Panthers wanted to see which Broward County classroom showed the most team spirit. Gresham and her husband Scott have been proud ticket holders the past three seasons, so she jumped at the opportunity to enter her class. Gresham gave her students a crash course in hockey and the Panthers.

It was exactly the kind of collision you'd expect the 6-foot-5, 235-pound defenseman to be involved in. Branislav Mezei slammed into the Islanders' Bruno Gervais, flattening him with a check in the first period Sunday that knocked Gervais out of the game with a concussion and a bruised thigh. In the third period, Mezei crushed center Jeremy Colliton near the boards. The two huge hits were highlights for a giant who hasn't used his size as much as the Panthers would like this season. "He gave us a couple of good hits there," coach Jacques Martin said.

Olli Jokinen skated off with two scoring records Wednesday night, but in the Panthers' dressing room after the game, Gregory Campbell wore the hero cape. The red and yellow cape, with an "H" stitched in white on the back, is given to one Panther after every win at home or on the road. Defenseman Steve Montador came up with the idea. And Wednesday, Campbell beamed as he stood with the cape tied around his neck-the reward for his two goals that helped the Panthers beat the Flyers 4-3 at BankAtlantic Center to end their two-game skid and Philadelphia's five-game winning streak.

Three Panthers extended scoring streaks to six games. Jesse Belanger and Andrei Lomakin assisted on Brian Benning's goal in the first period, while Scott Mellanby scored his team-leading 11th goal in the third period. Before Sunday, Belanger had 10 points (two goals, eight assists) in his previous five games, Lomakin had seven points (three goals, four assists), and Mellanby had 10 points (three goals, four assists). Dallas center Dave Gagner extended his scoring streak to 10 games with a first-period goal and assist.

What happens when the league's third-worst power-play unit goes up against the league's best penalty-killing team? Two goals in the first two chances. Naturally. The Panthers wasted little time in breaking their power-play slump against the Rangers. After going 0 for 22 the last four games, their longest drought, the Panthers scored just 18 seconds into the first power play of the game. They also scored on their second chance, in the second period. Dave Lowry, parked in the right slot, flicked a wrist shot over sliding goalie Mike Richter 6:02 into the first period to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead.

Olli Jokinen's mouth was a bloody mess. It was the morning of a game against Boston in Mike Keenan's first season as Panthers coach. During a skating drill, assistant coach George Kingston turned around and accidentally jammed his hockey stick into Jokinen's mouth. Jokinen says he lost four or five teeth, broke a bone above his upper lip and needed nearly 100 stitches and four hours in the dentist's office to fix the damage. He arrived at the arena about 5:30 p.m. and played. "It wasn't pretty," Jokinen said of his mouth, "but I still had my hands and legs.

Olli Jokinen's mouth was a bloody mess. It was the morning of a game against Boston in Mike Keenan's first season as Panthers coach. During a skating drill, assistant coach George Kingston turned around and accidentally jammed his hockey stick into Jokinen's mouth. Jokinen says he lost four or five teeth, broke a bone above his upper lip and needed nearly 100 stitches and four hours in the dentist's office to fix the damage. He arrived at the arena about 5:30 p.m. and played. "It wasn't pretty," Jokinen said of his mouth, "but I still had my hands and legs.